Cognition And Development - Mirror Neurones

Question 1

What are mirror neurones?

Answer 1

Special brain cells distributed in areas of the brain especially in the motor cortex

Question 2

What do mirror neurone cells do? How are they unique?

Answer 2

They fire in response to one owns actions and fire in response to action on part of others

Question 3

What did Ramachandran and Oberban claim?

Answer 3

They talked about Autism and claimed that Autism is a result of dysfunctional mirror neurones and they refer this as “broken mirror”

Question 4

What do Gallese and Gollman say about mirror neurones?

Answer 4

They claim that mirror neurones help us understand intentions rather than just observing the person

Question 5

How have mirror neurones shaped evolution?

Answer 5

Allowing us to live in large complex groups

Question 6

Give a strength of the mirror neurone theory

Answer 6

Haker et al- fMRI shows areas of the brain that are believed to be rich in mirror neurones (brodmans area) activate in tasks of social cognition eg yawning

Question 7

Give a limitation of the mirror neurone theory (Hadjikhani)

Answer 7

The findings of autism and abnormal structure in the brain alongside mirror neurones havent been replicated thus lack reliability and we cannot therefore depend on those findings to be true

Question 8

Give a limitation of the mirror neurone theory ( hikcoc)

Answer 8

We do not know for sure that mirror neurones exist, their function may be performed by other cells.

Question 9

Why are mirror neurones called “mirror neurones”?

Answer 9

Because they mirror motor activity in another individual

Question 10

Outline the discovery of mirror neurones

Answer 10

Rizollatti et al were studying electrical activity in a monkeys motor cortex when one researcher reached for their lunch in view of the monkey. At that point the monkeys brain became activated looking at researcher reach for food the same way it’d activate if monkey would reach for food himself .

Research showed it was the same brain cells that fired when monkey reached himself and saw other reach

Question 11

What do we mean when we say mirror neurones are involved in social cognition?

Answer 11

They allow us to interpret intention and emotion of others

Question 12

How are mirror neurones involved in perspective taking?

Answer 12

The same ability that allows us to stimulate actions may help us to take their perspective

Question 13

How are mirror neurones involved in evolution?

Answer 13

Ramachandran - they allow us to live in large complex groups

Question 14

What are 4 aspects that mirror neurones involved in?

Answer 14

Understanding intention
Perspective taking
Evolution
Autism

Question 15

What did Hadjikhani find when studying normal brains and Autistic brains?

Answer 15

Structural differences found in ASD brain areas with large number of mirror neurones compared to those without diagnosis

Question 16

How would we counter argue Hadjikhanis research findings?

Answer 16

(He found structure differences in a brain of ASD where they were large quantities of mirror neurones but it wasnt the case for normal brains.)

Not all the findings have been replicated therefore we cannot be sure of the findings to be true as a representation or just of a sample